Combined flexible closure and pouring spout



Sept. 28, 1965 s. E. LA HAM COMBINED FLEXIBLE CLOSURE AND POURING SPOUT Filed Dec. 30, 1963 I NVENTOR iTA/VMYE, LA/ZW 113 rnezp United States Patent 3,208,650 COMBINED FLEXIBLE CLOSURE AND POURING SPOUT Stanley E. La Ham, Aurora, 11]., assignor to Anfinsen Plastic Molding, Inc., a corporation of Illinois Filed Dec. 30, 1963, Ser. No. 334,152 2 Claims. (Cl. 222--543) The invention relates to improvements in closures and is more particularly concerned with the novel construction of a combined flexible closure and pouring spout or body, which have complemental means formed to resist relative rotation of the closure and spout body.

Specifically, the combination closure and pouring spout is fabricated from molded resilient plastic material. The pouring spout or body has an integral skirt on its underside that is engaged around a bead surrounding a container opening. It also has an internal concentric circumferential flange that engages firmly within the opening. The body is formed on its upper face with an integral pouring lip coincidental with a pouring opening therein. The closure is connected integrally with the body as by a flexible strap, and is in the form of a circular cap having an internal circumferential sleeve that fits snugly into the pouring opening and an external circumferential wall or skirt that is formed with means complemental to means on the body to prevent twisting or turning of the closure relative to said body.

It is, therefore, an object of the invention to provide a combination closure and pouring spout of novel construction.

Another object is to provide a device of the character described with novel means to prevent rotation of a snapon closure relative to a body over which it is fitted.

Another object is to provide a closure and a complemental pouring spout with novel means to seal said spout and to prevent relative rotation of the parts thereof.

Another object is to provide a device of the character described which is not expensive to manufacture, may readily be applied to a container, and which is very eflicient in use.

The structure, by means of which the above noted and other objects and advantages of the invention are attained, will be described in the following specification, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, showing a preferred illustrative embodiment of the invention, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of a fragmentary portion of a container having the combination closure and pouring spout mounted thereon, showing the closure in open position;

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the closure and pouring spout, showing the closure in open position;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of the combination closure and pouring spout, and also of the container, as viewed along line 33 of FIG. 1, but showing the closure in closed position; and,

FIG. 4 is an enlarged vertical sectional view of the combination closure and pouring spout.

Referring to the exemplary disclosure in the accompanying drawings, the container 11 includes a conical top wall 12 having a central opening therein surrounded by an external bead 13.

The combination closure and pouring spout includes a body 14 and a closure 15 fabricated from resilient shaperetaining plastic material and integrally connected as by a hinge strap 16. As best shown in FIG. 4, the body 14 includes a circular wall 17 having on its underside an external depending skirt 18 provided with an inside diameter slightly smaller than the outside diameter of the container bead 13 so as to have a snug snap-fit thereover.

The body also includes an internal annular flange or neck 3,208,650 Patented Sept. 28, 1965 19 spaced from the skirt 18 to provide a groove 21 between them to receive the container bead 13. The neck 19 is sized so as to have a snug snap-fit within the bead 13. This dual snug fit insures a tight hermetic seal and mechanical joining between the body 14 and the container.

The upper side of the body 14 has an upstanding pouring lip 22 integral with wall 17 and terminating in the perimeter of a circular pouring opening 23 in saidwall. An upstanding annular flange 24 on said wall is spaced from and surrounds the circular pouring opening. The surface between the flange 24 and the opening 23 is tilted, with reference to the general horizontal plane of the closure, thereby to insure the drainage back into the container of any dripping from spout or lip 22.

The closure 15 is connected to the pouring spout or body by the hinge strap 16. As shown, the closure comprises a top wall 25 and a deep peripheral skirt 26 having an inside diameter slightly smaller than the outside diameter of upstanding flange 24 on the body so as to have a snap fit thereover for securing the closure in a closed position over said body. An internal sleeve 27 is integral with and depends from the closure top wall 25 and is axially located relative to skirt 26. This sleeve has an outside diameter substantially equal to the diameter of pouring opening 23 and is of a length suflicient to project into and slightly through said pouring opening for closing same when the closure is in closed position.

It sometimes happens that the closure of devices of this character are twisted or turned in an attempt to free them for opening, with the result that the hinge strap 16 becomes broken. This is prevented in the instant structure by providing skirt 26 with a flat chordal surface 28 that mates, when in closed position, with a fiat chordal surface 29 formed on upstanding flange 24. If desired, the outside face of the Wall forming the chordal surface 28 may have ridges or serrations 31 thereon and a shoulder 32 to facilitate finger engagement therewith for lifting the closure from closed position into open position.

Although I have described a preferred embodiment of my invention, in considerable detail, it will be understood that the description thereof is intended to be illustrative, rather than restrictive, as many details of the structure disclosed may be modified or changed without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Accordingly, I do not desire to be restricted to the exact construction described.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In combination, a container having an opening provided with an external annular bead and a combination closure and pouring spout constructed of resilient material capable of contracting and expanding, said pouring spout comprising a cylindrical body having an axial flange and an annular skirt on its lower side defining an annular groove adapted to receive firmly therein the external bead, an axial pouring opening in said body, a pouring lip partially surrounding said pouring opening and extending upwardly from the upper side of and integral with said body, an upstanding annular flange on the upper side of said body spaced from said pouring lip, said flange having a flat chordal area on its outside circumferential surface, and the closure comprising an inverted substantially cylindrical cup-shaped body the perimeter wall of which is adapted to nest over said upstanding annular flange, said wall having a flat chordal area coincident with the chordal area of the flange to prevent relative rotation of the pouring spout and closure, means integrally connecting said closure hingedly to said body at a point diametrically opposed to the flat chordal area, and an axial sleeve on said closure for telescoping into and closing the pouring opening.

2. A combination closure and pouring spout constructed of resilient material, said pouring spout comprising a cylindrical body having an axial flange and an annular skirt on its lower side defining an annular groove adapted to receive firmly therein an external bead on a container, said body having a central aperture, a pouring lip partially surrounding said central aperture and extending upwardly from the upper side of said body, an upstanding annular flange on the upper side of said body spaced from said pouring lip, said flange having a flat chordal area on its outside circumferential surface, and the closure comprising an inverted cup-shaped body the perimeter wall of which is adapted to nest over said upstanding annular flange, a thin flexible strap connecting one side of the cylindrical body to the corresponding side of the closure diametrically opposite to the flat chordal References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,763,402 9/ 5 6 Livingstone 222-5 70 X 2,851,203 9/58 Nowak 222-543 3,1 17,702 1/64 Henchert 2225 43 LOUIS J. DEMBO, Primary Examiner.

EVERETT W. KIRBY, ROBERT B. REEVES,

Examiners. 

1. IN COMBINATIN, A CONTAINER HAVING AN OPENING PROVIDED WITH AN EXTERNAL ANNULAR BEAD AND A COMBINATION CLOSURE AND POURING SPOUT CONSTRUCTED OF RESILIENT MATERIAL CAPABLE OF CONTRCTING AND EXPANDING, SAID POURING SPOUT COMPRISING A CYLINDRICAL BODY HAVING AND AXIAL FLANGE AND AN ANNULAR SKIRT ON ITS LOWER SIDE DEFINING AN ANNULAR GROOVE ADATPTED TO RECEIVE FIRMLY THEREIN THE EXTERNAL BEAD, AN AXIAL POURING OPENING IN SAID BODY, A POURING LIP PARTIALLY SURROUNDING SAID POURING OPENING AND EXTENDING UPWARDLY FROM THE UPPER SIDE OF AND INTERGRAL WITH SAID BODY, AN UPSTANDING ANNULAR FLANGE ON THE UPPER SIDE OF SAID BODY SPACED FROM SAID POURING LIP, SAID FLANGE HAVING A FLAT CHORDAL AREA ON ITS OUTSIDE CIRCUMFERENTIAL SURFACE, AND THE CLOSURE COMPRISING AN INVERTED SUBSTANTIALLY CYLINDRICAL CUP-SHAPED BODY THE PERIMETER WALL OF WHICH IS ADAPTED TO NEST OVER SAID UPSTANDING ANNULAR FLANGE, SAID WALL HAVING A FLAT CHORDAL AREA COINCIDENT WITH THE CHORDAL AREA OF THE FLANGE TO PREVENT RELATIVE ROTATION OF THE POURING SPOUT AND CLOSURE, MEANS INTERGRALLY CONNECTING SAID CLOSURE HINGEDLY TO SAID BODY AT A POINT DIAMETRICALLY OPPOSED TO THE FLAT CHORDAL AREA, AND AND AXIAL SLEEVE ON SAID CLOSURE FOR TELESCOPING INTO AND CLOSING THE POURING OPENING. 